Animal welfare advocates gather to discuss issues, progress

By Megan Beyer, Sun Journal Staff

Published: Wednesday, September 11, 2013 at 04:09 PM.

Animal advocates gathered Tuesday at Craven Community College to discuss animal welfare issues in Craven County.

The meeting was led by Kim Alboum, state director of Humane Society of United States. Deemed a grass roots meeting, the goal was to discuss the results of a recent survey taken of the programs and resources available within North Carolina’s open admission animal shelters and how groups can work together to improve the lives of animals.

Alboum’s interns decided to take on a poll project after receiving complaints from individuals out of state about how “bad” North Carolina animal shelters are.

The survey was designed to find out what programs and resources each shelter has in order to determine the areas in need of improvement.

Animal advocates gathered Tuesday at Craven Community College to discuss animal welfare issues in Craven County.

The meeting was led by Kim Alboum, state director of Humane Society of United States. Deemed a grass roots meeting, the goal was to discuss the results of a recent survey taken of the programs and resources available within North Carolina’s open admission animal shelters and how groups can work together to improve the lives of animals.

Alboum’s interns decided to take on a poll project after receiving complaints from individuals out of state about how “bad” North Carolina animal shelters are.

The survey was designed to find out what programs and resources each shelter has in order to determine the areas in need of improvement.

As it turns out, many of the shelters throughout the state have 10 to 12 of the surveyed programs in place, all on varying levels, however.

“The most surprising result of the survey was that 50 of the shelters had trusted partners. These partnerships are changing the lives of animals,” Alboum said.

The trusted partners the poll referred to are those who provide support to the animal shelters. The Craven-Pamlico Animal Services Center has the support of groups such as Pals for Paws, Colonial Capital Humane Society, Pamlico Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), North Carolina Voters for Animal Welfare and numerous community members.

Alboum intends to use the results of the survey to show how far North Carolina shelters have come.

“It’s exciting to see the progression in animal welfare, and we wanted to see it on a piece of paper,” Alboum said.

During the next year, Alboum plans to address some of the areas where North Carolina shelters are lacking. The survey revealed that 59 percent of staff members at N.C. animal shelters receive 16 hours or more of training annually.

“This is where I saw real opportunities,” Alboum said.

Often, shelter staff members are not able to attend some of the training opportunities because of budget and travel restraints.

“We need to get trainers in the shelters so the staff doesn’t have to travel,” Alboum said.

As for concerns in the area of vaccinations upon intake, Alboum expressed that shelters want to improve in this area, but it’s beyond their control.

“The desire is there, but not the resources,” Alboum said.

During the meeting, Alboum announced that the U.S. Department of Agriculture adopted a new rule on Tuesday that allows federal oversight of puppy mills that conduct their sales online.

Because of a loophole in federal Animal Welfare Act regulations, internet sellers have been exempt from federal oversight, which has been used to their advantage, animal advocates say.

When the internet sellers advertise puppies online, they typically provide pictures of puppies that appear to be well-taken care of, when, in reality, the puppies being sold are kept in cages that are well below standard, advocates say.

“The face of animal welfare is changing, guys,” Alboum said.

Megan Beyer can be reached at 252-635-5671 or megan.beyer@newbernsj.com